Thursday, May 22, 2014

Rehabilitation was the word of the day as hundreds of inmates and guests gathered for Tedx Ironwood State Prison: “Infinite Possibilities.”

Speaker after speaker – including professors, doctors, actors, CDCR staff and inmates – shared stories of healing and hope. Inmate emcee Steve Duby pointed out that on the same day, TEDx talks were being held in Pompeii, Italy; Taipei City, Taiwan; Fuzhou, China; and Blythe, California.

“Today all of you are part of a global community,” Duby said as he began introducing the impressive list of speakers. One of the first was Sir Richard Branson, founder of Virgin Mobile, who spoke on the importance of rehabilitating oneself while incarcerated.

Sir Richard Branson, left, talks with Scott Budnick.

During a Q&A with organizer Scott Budnick, a film producer and founder of the Anti-Recidivism Coalition, Branson was asked why he feels it’s important that employers give formerly incarcerated people a second chance.

Branson replied that not only does it help offenders stand on their own two feet and make them realize they are loved and cared for, it’s also a great opportunity for companies to work with formerly incarcerated people who come out of prison educated and with job skills.

“I think as many companies as possible need to get out there and take people and give them a chance,” Branson said. “And I think they’ll be surprised by how successful it is.”

The independently organized TEDx event was made possible through a partnership of the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and coordinators Budnick and the Ford Foundation. Each speaker helped spread the TED message: Ideas can change the world.

For inmate Marquise Clark, changing the world begins with getting an education. Of the 1,288 college degrees earned at ISP, at least one will be his. And for that, he shared, he’s “grateful for the opportunity” to be in prison — the theme of his talk.

“Being enrolled in college, passing the classes, gaining more knowledge and completing the classes satisfied me because it says that my future is looking bright again,” Clark said. “So yes, I am grateful for the opportunity to be in prison. I’m grateful to be alive, for how far I came.”

Getting an education, he emphasized, means not only expanding horizons, but also gaining self-value, self-confidence and courage. Another speaker, Ellen Rutledge, focused on a different kind of courage: the courage to forgive. Rutledge, chief executive assistant to Chief Deputy Warden Neil McDowell, lost her son in 2008 when he was murdered. While the journey to forgiveness was long and trying, she shared, it is possible.

“Be assured: We all have the ability to forgive,” she said. “But it may not happen in one fell swoop. Sometimes it has to happen in waves. Sometimes we have to forgive someone many times before we can let go of all the emotional residue of the past.”

Rutledge wasn’t the only CDCR employee to speak at TEDx. Millicent Tidwell, director of the Division of Rehabilitative Programs, spoke about the importance of the “R” in CDCR, and ISP Correctional Officer Calvin Williams shared his story of growing up without a father, urging the inmates to stay connected with their children, as even a phone call can make a big difference in a child’s life.

Therapist and self-help author Sean Stephenson received one of the loudest standing ovations of the day after he spoke about making healthy choices. Stephenson, who was born with osteogenesis imperfecta (“brittle bone syndrome”), was given just months to live when he was born.

More than 30 years later, Stephenson’s motivational talks inspire others to live their dreams instead of focusing on their limitations. Stephenson railed against pity, pointing out that had he chosen to wallow in self-pity, he would probably not be alive today. “I choose something else,” he said. “I chose to be strong. I choose to be a leader. I choose to have words to move this planet.”

Stephenson shared why he believes he was born, and encouraged the inmates to look inside themselves to find out why they were born, and use that knowledge to change the world.

“I was born to rid this world of insecurity, because when a human being is insecure, we do stupid stuff … we chase external validation and external objects to try to tell us we are enough. You are enough.”

“I have a belief that has served me in my life, and that is that everyone is rooting for you to win, even those who do not know it.”

Friday, May 16, 2014

By Bill Sessa, Public Information Officer, Office of Public and Employee Communications

After three years of below normal rainfall and drought, 2014 is already shaping up to be a year of historic fire danger and CDCR inmate fire crews are already are as busy as they normally would be in mid-summer.
On Thursday, 1,300 inmate fire fighters were battling nine separate blazes covering more than 11,000 acres in Southern California from Santa Barbara to San Diego. CDCR has 42 adult and one juvenile fire camp and approximately 4,300 inmate-firefighters on the fire lines. Working side by side with U.S. Forest Service and CALFIRE crews, the inmates play a large public safety role while saving taxpayers an estimated $100 million a year.

Friday, May 2, 2014

CARSON - Please join the
California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) and
Assemblymember Isadore Hall, III of District 64 for the Business to Business
Roundtable (B2B) on Friday, May 9, 2014.This
quarterly open forum is a gathering of community and business representatives
with a mission to revitalize economic growth in the region.

This quarter’s B2B topic is
“Small Business: The Engine of the Economy.”
Richard Martinez, Procurement & Services Officer II of the
California State Prison, Los Angeles County, will serve as a panelist to help
the Los Angeles business community learn how to do business with CDCR. Martinez will discuss procurement and
contracting opportunities, as well as, provide information about the State of
California Small Business Program. More
than 200 local suppliers are expected to attend.

Event
Details:

Business to Business
Rountable

Friday,
May 9, 2014

8:00
AM – 10:00 AM

California
State University, Dominguez Hills

1000
E. Victoria Street, Extended Education Auditorium 1213

Carson,
CA 90747

*FREE
PARKING*

For
additional information about the event, please contact Assemblymember Hall’s district
office at (310) 223-1201. For
information about CDCR please contact Allie Powell or Albert Rivas with the
Office of External Affairs at (916) 445-4950.

The Automated Rehabilitation Catalog and Information Delivery (ARCAID) machines will help parolees search and locate a wide range of available resources from substance abuse treatment, sober living, health services, employment, child care, and necessary government services like driver’s licenses, social security and veteran’s services.

Each kiosk will have a user-friendly touch-screen for parolees to access the database of community resources available in his/her area. Parolees can select a nearby resource, view maps and contact information for their selections, and print directions to take with them. The self-guided interface will help parolees find resources without the need for assistance. CDCR anticipates the ARCAID machines will increase parolee use of rehabilitative programs while reducing dependence on staff for research and referrals.

“Installation of these kiosks will streamline information on the rehabilitative services CDCR offers offenders in the community. Having ready access to this information is vital to successful reentry into their communities,” DRP Chief Millicent Tidwell said. “The ultimate goal is to reduce recidivism by increasing the use of these programs.”

In time, the ARCAID services will be available across a wide range of mobile devices. It will also be accessible by friends and family members of parolees so they can assist their loved one’s transition back into the community. Parole agents will also be able to track the activity of their parolees to help make sure they are receiving the help they’re looking for.

“Parolee involvement in rehabilitative programs within the community is critical to reducing their recidivism rate,” DAPO Chief Dan Stone said. “Our parole agents work very hard to help protect public safety. These new machines will be an additional resource for offenders to get the immediate assistance they need.”